by Web Editor | Jul 26, 2017 | News
Egger Group has announced plans to build its first U.S. particleboard plant in Lexington, North Carolina. The Austrian-based panel producer will invest approximately $304 million for the first phase of the project, with the entire project expected to run about $700 million.
Construction is set to begin by the end of 2018, with production scheduled for 2020. The panel plant will create 400 direct jobs over the next six years, with an additional 370 jobs planned for later phases of the 15-year project.
The news was announced July 24, during a meeting with the North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, representatives of local authorities, company co-owner Michael Egger and Walter Schiegl, Egger Group Management Technology/Production.
Sources report the 4.5 million-square-foot production facility will be spread across more than 200 acres in an industrial park. The first stage of the project will involve the construction of a composite panel plant with coating capacities. The company said the North Carolina plant will feature state-of-the-art facilities and will enable it to better serve customers in North America.
“The planned production location in Lexington, North Carolina will play a decisive role for Egger’s increasing presence on the North American market for wood-based materials, as well as ensure product availability and delivery speed for our customers,” Schiegl said. Egger’s panel products are used in the manufacture of a variety of items, including laminate flooring, cabinetry, residential and commercial furniture, and casework.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/egger-plans-700-million-particleboard-plant-north-carolina?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news,canadian_news
by Web Editor | Aug 3, 2016 | News
Kronospan Plans $362 Million Expansion In Alabama
Kronospan announced plans for a $362 million expansion of its operations in Oxford, Ala. The expansion will consist of four projects: two laminate flooring and decorative paper impregnation lines; a particleboard and thermally infused laminate line; an expansion of the KronoChem resin plant; and development of a furniture cluster. Kronospan plans to hire an additional 160 persons for its workforce. Startup for the expansion projects will roll out from late 2016 through 2018.
“We sincerely appreciate the State of Alabama, acting through the Dept. of Commerce, the city of Oxford and Calhoun County, for supporting our expansion project and making it a reality,” comments Tim Pack, CFO of Kronospan. Once the expansion project is completed, Kronospan will have invested $650 million and will employ more than 270 at its Oxford operations. Kronospan will utilize the services of the local Alabama Career Center to recruit for the expansion. Hiring will be undertaken in phases and include a job fair in the near future.
Kronospan is a leading manufacturer of wood-based panel products and related value-added products. The company is privately owned, with more than 40 manufacturing and distribution sites throughout the world.
In 2008, Kronospan started up operations at Oxford where it currently manufactures MDF, HDF and resins. Notwithstanding very difficult market conditions in the housing industry, Kronospan has maintained its level of employment at the Oxford facility since startup.
In December 2015, Kronospan made another significant investment in the United States when it acquired Clarion Industries in Shippenville, Pa. Clarion Industries produces MDF, HDF and laminate flooring. The Pennsylvania operations employ 320.
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by Web Editor | Aug 1, 2016 | News
The Environmental Protection Agency rolled out a formaldehyde emission standard, working with the California Air Resources Board (CARB) in setting the rules that are mandated by Congress.
The EPA moved to reduce exposure to formaldehyde vapors from laminate panel and engineered wood products produced domestically or imported into the United States. The agency worked with the California Air Resources Board to make its final national rule consistent with California requirements for composite wood products.
One year after the rule is published, composite wood products that are sold, supplied, offered for sale, manufactured, or imported in the United States will need to be labeled as TSCA Title VI compliant. These products include: hardwood plywood, medium-density fiberboard, particleboard as well as household and other finished goods containing these products.
The action was triggered in large part by discovering that Lumber Liquidators’ flooring supply from China has been labeled CARB compliant though it was not. Lumber Liquidators has since settled with CARB and the Consumer Products Safety Commission over its liability for the matter. The new rule requires other sellers of laminate panel to meet the CARB standards for formaldehyde exposure.
EPA says the new rule will level the playing field for domestic laminate flooring manufacturers who have a high rate of compliance with the California standard and will ensure that imported products not subject to California’s requirements will meet the new standard and thus, not contain dangerous formaldehyde vapors.”
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/epa-issues-final-formaldehyde-exposure-rule-guided-carb
by Web Editor | Feb 24, 2016 | News
Appalachian Hardwood Manufacturers, Inc. (AHMI), promoting the advantages of formaldehyde-free real, solid wood to public, are contrasting its natural qualities with the unsafe laminate flooring that had gotten Lumber Liquidators into trouble with consumers.
“Discount flooring companies selling imported laminate floors have been providing customers with products that can carry seven to twenty times the base amount of carcinogenic formaldehyde allowed by the EPA,” says the AHMI. “At these levels, formaldehyde secretes from the flooring and into the home’s air, becoming a high-level health risk, especially for children and pets who are most susceptible to its effects. Carcinogenic formaldehyde found in artificial wood has been linked to lung and nasal cancer, nausea, asthma, and other severe respiratory issues.”
Wood industry trade groups, including furniture and cabinetry makers, have been trying to separate their goods from the products made in China that contained high levels of formaldehyde. The Kitchen Cabinet Makers Association issued a statement last week saying that there is no risk of exposure to formaldehyde in cabinets that receive its Environmental Stewardship Program seal, because its program requires that engineered wood used in it must be CARB Compliant.
Other groups have questioned the validity of testing methods used to detect formaldehyde in wood products – such as flooring sold by online retailer Wayfair – tests that deconstruct the multi-layered sandwich that makes up laminate flooring. The Hardwood Plywood and Veneer Association estimates that “finishes of paint, lacquer, sealants, laminate, plastic or other material” reduce formaldehyde emissions of the underlying raw board by 90 percent.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/wood/pricing-supply/appalachian-hardwood-manufacturers-tout-formaldehyde-free-real-solid-wood
by Web Editor | Jan 8, 2016 | News
KronotexUSA and its parent firm Swiss Krono Group will invest $230 million to build a high-density fiberboard mill and expand the company’s laminate flooring production in Barnwell, South Carolina, a move which will create 105 new jobs over the next few years.
Construction is scheduled to begin by mid-2016, with HDF operations to begin by summer 2018. Once completed, the company said the expansion will allow it to produce 300,000 cubic-meters of HDF per year, to be used for manufacturing laminate flooring and for sale to furniture, cabinet, fixture, door and other wood-based manufacturers. Kronotex’s annual laminate flooring capacity is expected to increase an additional 8 million square-meters.
Kronotex opened its laminate flooring facility in 2005 and was featured on WoodworkingNetwork.com in 2008. A $45 million expansion in 2011 about doubled the size of the plant, and in 2015 Kronotex underwent another expansion, adding equipment to do its own paper and overlay treating.
“We’ve been very happy with the quality of the workforce talent here in South Carolina. And we’re delighted to be able to employ more Americans here in Barnwell and grow our exceptional relationship with the local people, businesses and government,” said Norm Voss, former CEO and member of the Board of Directors of Kronotex USA Holdings Inc.
The addition of new jobs will increase the company’s workforce in South Carolina to 275 people. Additional funding for the project was provided by the Coordinating Council for Economic Development, which approved job development credits, plus a $1 million Rural Infrastructure Fund grant to Barnwell County to assist with the costs of real property improvements related to the project.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/kronotex-announces-230-million-laminate-flooring-panel-mill-expansion
